New Site Levels Playing Field for Big, Small Business

By Paul Nicholls | November 20, 2000
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[Vancouver, CANADA] Describing itself as the Internet's first true do-it-yourself public relations company, PRMadeEasy.com has begun selling PR tools and advice for a fraction of the cost of a consultant's hourly rate.

PRMadeEasy.com is the first major department of Reputations.com, which is also newly-launched.

"The PR industry won't be happy we've taken away the mystery that translates into expensive service fees for consultants," said Wayne Hartrick, chief executive officer of Reputations.com.

"We're selling paint-by-numbers public relations that more than meets the needs of small- and medium-sized businesses that can't pay big bucks to PR firms."

While a senior PR consultant can charge up to a whopping Cdn $250 (US $375) per hour, the new services introductory subscription is about Cdn $8 (US $12) a month. That modest price tag makes powerful PR tools available to smaller businesses for less than the cost of s single newspaper ad.

Subscribers receive access to more than 50 practical, step-by-step templates, guides, and training courses assisting them to:

Generate headline-grabbing news releases
Avoid being misquoted in the media
Create a crisis communications plan
Talk to the online media
Publicize special events

PRMadeEasy.com already has access to a market of more than six million small-and medium-sized businesses through signed agreements with business affinity programs, most of which are exclusive. For example, a recent agreement with Business Savings Club includes PRMadeEasy.com in MasterCard's Business Savings Program.

"The US PR industry recorded $3 billion in fees in 1999 and is growing at 30% a year," said Hartrick, who founded the company after 15 years in senior public relations counseling with clients Canada, U.S.A., Europe, and Asia.

"That is translating into a shortage of PR practitioners and soaring rates at a time when business is beginning to recognize that reputation is as important as physical assets."

Reputations.com and PRMadeEasy.com intend to meet the needs of the massive market of small- and medium-sized businesses presently not serviced by the traditional PR industry.